“Mockingjay” Hits Another Marketing Home Run

The masterminds behind the marketing The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 struck again today with the surprise release of a YouTube miniseries entitled, “Capitol Voices.”

Each episode, which will be released everyday this week, is focused on a particular district and is a beautifully crafted, streamlined form of propaganda. In an eerie example of reality and fiction blurring together, in each video, “one of your favorite Citizen creators from YouTube will give you a never-before-seen tour of their districts. First, the Threadbangertextile experts of District 8 will show how utility meets beauty in this season’s fashion—plus, you’ll get a look at a new way to wear your Capitol pride,” according to Google’s official blog. I’m glad to see that the irony of a corporate behemoth like Google being a “friend” of the Capitol is not being lost on fans, as evidenced by the first comment on the blog post: “I always knew Google was the Capitol!”

The complete list of upcoming episodes can be found here and will feature such varied topics as electricity, transportation, and fashion. I think it’s safe to say that the episode fans are most looking forward to seeing is Thursday’s, which will include a celebration of Panem’s most cherished victor; Peeta Mellark!”

As I’ve said before, the marketing for Mockingjay has been a thing of beauty. The minds behind it were smart enough to all but erase any sense that this is a fictional movie. Just recently, I was at a movie theater with friends and took a long look at the poster for the film. There was absolutely nothing that referenced actors, the production company, the director, and the common fourth-wall-breaking items you see on a traditional movie poster. It was literally like looking at a propaganda poster. I loved it.

I especially love the final statement in the YouTube description for this series: “Don’t forget to register for updates from CapitolTV… It’s mandatory.” The first part is the typical thing we see nowadays for various films and TV shows; after all, a great deal of us follow official movie and TV show Twitters, Facebook pages, etc. Yet, the sly inclusion of, “It’s mandatory,” helps illustrate the true horror of Panem and perhaps, the fear that we’re not that different from this fictional world.

Tell us what you think this miniseries? Which episode are you most looking forward to seeing?